Redemption Renewed In Battle

בפסוק כ"ת למלחמה כו' ה"א כו' המעלך מא"מ כו'

The passuk says, "When you go out to war... Hashem your God... who brought you up from the land of Mitzrayim..." (Devarim 20:1).

The Torah introduces the laws of going out to war by invoking Hashem as the One who took Bnei Yisrael out of Mitzrayim. The Sfas Emes asks why this particular description of Hashem is mentioned specifically in the context of war.

פי' בכל עת מלחמה וצרה של בנ"י מתעורר יצ"מ

The explanation is that at every time of war and tribulation that befalls Bnei Yisrael, the power of Yetzias Mitzrayim, the redemption from Mitzrayim, is aroused anew.

He answers that whenever Bnei Yisrael face battle or distress, the original koach of the redemption from Mitzrayim becomes active and comes to their aid.

כי גאולת מצרים לא הי' רק לשעה

For the redemption from Mitzrayim was not merely for that one moment in time.

The geulah from Mitzrayim was not a one-time historical event that ended once they left.

רק הי' גאולה לכל מצרים שיש לבנ"י לדורות

Rather, it was a redemption from every kind of constriction and straits that Bnei Yisrael would face throughout all the generations.

The word "Mitzrayim" shares a root with "meitzar," a narrow place or constriction; the redemption thus reaches into every form of hardship and confinement Bnei Yisrael ever encounter across the generations.

לכן מצוון לזכור יצ"מ בכל יום:

It is for this reason that we are commanded to remember Yetzias Mitzrayim every single day.

Because that redemptive power is constantly relevant to our daily struggles, the Torah obligates us to recall Yetzias Mitzrayim each and every day.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains why the Torah, when commanding Bnei Yisrael to go out to war, recalls that Hashem brought them up from the land of Mitzrayim. He teaches that Yetzias Mitzrayim was not a redemption limited to that single moment in history, but a redemption from every meitzar, every narrowness and distress, that Bnei Yisrael would ever face throughout all the generations. Therefore, whenever they confront war or tribulation, the power of that original geulah is aroused to deliver them once again. This is precisely why we are commanded to remember Yetzias Mitzrayim every single day, for its saving power remains alive and relevant in every era.